Yarddies have moved out of Rugby, with the result crime has dropped by a third, police bosses announced.

But officers leading the high-profile Operation Echelon, which aims to cut down on drug, gun and violent crime in the town, admitted they were no closer to catching the killer of Brownsover granddad Terry Morgan, who was gunned down on the doorstep of his house 20 months ago.

The statistics were released just two months after police hit back at claims that drugs in the area were spiralling out of control, following newspaper reports that residents were losing confidence in the police.

Det Chief Insp Ken Lawrence, who is leading Operation Echelon, said he was happy with the results - but warned the police would continue to keep up the pressure.

He said: "We are not complacent about this.

"We know the drugs market is not something you can do six months on and then it will disappear." He said police surveys showed that Yardies who moved into Rugby with the intention of running the hard drugs market had moved out.

He said: "We had some disturbing evidence during the summer that they were coming to Rugby and seeking to remain here.

"Many had a criminal history in Jamaica and some were paying local women to marry them.

"That problem no longer exists. The individuals are no longer in the area."

Crime has dropped by around a third in Brownsover since Operation Echelon was launched in February, with just 462 crimes reported since the end of January last year, compared with 633 for the same period last year.

Twelve firearms have been seized throughout the year, 141 people have been arrested and about £90,000 of drugs have been recovered.